Social Media

I had a wonderful chat with author George Kramer this afternoon. We spoke about his books, writing, and our mutual love for Brooklyn, New York.

Brooklyn born, George and his family moved to Long Island. In 1989 he left the New York Area and now lives with his wife and daughter in McCordsville, Indiana. But, you can never take the Brooklyn out of a Brooklynite, even though he was mostly brought up on Long Island, but we had no problem understanding each other with our mutual Brooklyn/New York accents. Music to my ears.

George was born to a large family. He is not only one third of a triplet but has a total of nine brothers and sisters.

Discussing the books George has written was musical as well. He’s always been a fan of scifi/fantasy so it wasn’t surprising that he watched “The Dresden Files,” a Netflix series about a Chicago-based wizard working as a private investigator. The series was based on the books written by Jim Butcher.

When the series was canceled George started reading Butcher’s books and realized that the could write books just like Jim’s. His epiphany created the world of his Arcadis science fiction/fantasy series.

The concept for the books was formed while he was visiting his sister, Sharon, who was busy painting her home. She taught George some things about color and that gave him the basis for his series.

“Arcadis: Prophecy,” the first book in this Young Adult series invites young readers into “a sorcerer world where society is divided by levels of power denoted by color. Things go smoothly as long as the citizens follow the law, marrying only within their own color.

“But along comes Lord Quill, who abolishes this decree. A dilution occurs as the primary colors begin inter-marrying — and procreating. Suddenly orange, green and purple are part of the societal color scheme.”

George took his books to St. VIncent’s hospital where he works as a patient care technician. His friends supported Kramer by buying a copy and ended up loving the books. They urged him to continue with the series.

Kramer just finished the fifth book, “Arcadis: Convergence,” which should be released within the next month or so. But that is not the end of Arcadis. George has already started the sixth in the series.

When I asked him if he wrote the books with just boys in mind he said that he wrote them for girls too but he did admit that boys were a little bit more drawn to the story line than girls.

And what about moms and dads? Kramer said that he’s always hearing from parents who tell him how much they enjoy the series. In fact, the series gets only four and five star reviews on Amazon thanks to the parents.

Not having young children of my own I asked George if he wrote anything for adults. He answered by saying that at the moment he has over 150 articles published on various online sites and has written two books of poetry, “Pondering Existence” and “What Is The Written Word For?”

Kramer always enjoyed poetry and when he first moved to Indiana he had joined a poetry club. But, unfortunately, wasn’t happy there. Kramer felt the work of the poet’s at the club was lacking substance so he felt it was best to leave the group.

Even with sister Sharon’s knowledge of color for inspiration, George has another source that gets him writing; his ten year old daughter, Caris. “Her name rhymes with Paris,” he joked with me when I, of course, mispronounced it. Sorry, Caris.

Like any good daddy, George is amazed at how Caris’s mind works so he wrote two short books focusing on her: “My Little Girl And Her Musings” and “More of Caris’s Musings.”

Whenever I interview an author I ask the a very specific question, “Do you write for yourself or do you write for others?” Just like every other author Kramer told me that he writes for himself. “If you don’t write for yourself and write for others instead your stories and books will sound forced.” I had to agree with him.

So what’s next for Mr. Kramer? He has many book signings scheduled for the coming months and on March 15 he will be selling and signing his books at St. Vincent’s cafeteria. At the book signing the true character of this author will come through: he will be donating 15% of everything he sells to the hospital . “I believe in giving back.”

Many of his books are free on Kindle Unlimited. But if you can, buy at least the first in the Arcadias series for your kids or grand children. Get their heads away from their phones and games and show them how a good book can transport them to a magical land.

Advertisements

Share this:

Like this:

LikeLoading...

skatss
I love to read and write. Books have a calming affect on me and read between 2 to 4 books a week. Writing is also a joy to me. I write short stories, articles, and book reviews. I love sharing my opinions although I do tend to get sarcastic. What can I say?

Susan, your grandson would like George’s YA series when he gets a little older. George’s new book is his first adult book it’s a big change for him. I’m starting it tomorrow and I’m sure it will be a good novel.